Miscommunication Between Pilots Led to United Airlines Jet’s Terrifying Dive, Investigators Reveal

Miscommunication between pilots led to a United Airlines jet diving dangerously close to the ocean’s surface shortly after takeoff from Hawaii in December, according to federal investigators. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) released a final report stating that the crew failed to manage the plane’s vertical path, airspeed, and nose direction after a mix-up between the captain and co-pilot.

The incident occurred after a normal takeoff during heavy rain at Kahului Airport on the island of Maui. The captain asked the co-pilot, or first officer, to reset the wing flaps, but the co-pilot misheard “15” instead of “five,” as per the NTSB. It was soon realized by the pilots that the plane was pitched downward and accelerating.

The co-pilot later told investigators, “At this point I knew the captain was having difficulty with airspeed control… I couldn’t be certain what the captain was dealing with.” The plane’s nose continued to pitch down, and the co-pilot saw through the windshield that they were breaking through the cloud cover.

Realizing the severity of the situation, the co-pilot repeatedly announced, “Pull up, pull up, pull up, pull up,” while the plane’s ground proximity warning system sounded an alarm. The Boeing 777 plunged more than 1,400 feet toward the Pacific Ocean from an altitude of over 2,200 feet before the pilots were able to recover, according to the NTSB.

Despite the incident, the captain decided to continue the flight to San Francisco after being assured by the chief flight attendant that everyone was okay and there was no apparent damage to the plane. The rest of the trip was uneventful.

The United flight had 271 passengers and 10 crew members on board. The captain, aged 55, had nearly 20,000 hours of flying experience, while the co-pilot had 5,300 hours of flight time. Both pilots are still flying for United, according to the airline.

United spokesman Joshua Freed emphasized the airline’s commitment to safety, stating, “There’s nothing more important than the safety of our crew and customers, which is why we’re drawing on the lessons learned from this flight to inform the training of all United pilots.” He added that the pilots voluntarily reported the incident, and United fully cooperated with the independent investigation to improve safety industry-wide.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), which regulates airlines, confirmed that the United pilots reported the incident under a voluntary safety-reporting program. The FAA reviewed the incident and took appropriate action.

The incident initially received little attention until The Air Current, an aviation publication, reported on its analysis of data gathered from the plane. The NTSB only learned of the incident two months later, by which time the information from the black boxes had been recorded over.

It is worth noting that the United flight took place on the same day that a Hawaiian Airlines flight from Phoenix encountered severe turbulence as it approached Honolulu, resulting in 36 people being injured, 11 of them seriously. The National Weather Service had issued an advisory for thunderstorms and unstable air in the area.

This report has been corrected to note that the flight took off from Maui, not Honolulu.

What were the specific factors that led to the miscommunication between the captain and co-pilot according to the NTSB report?

To the NTSB report.

The report concluded that the miscommunication between the captain and co-pilot led to a breakdown in the management of the plane’s vertical path, airspeed, and nose direction. The co-pilot misheard the captain’s instruction to reset the wing flaps, resulting in the plane pitching downward and accelerating.

The co-pilot, realizing that the captain was struggling with airspeed control, became increasingly alarmed as the plane’s nose continued to pitch down. They observed that the aircraft was descending through the cloud cover, indicating the severity of the situation.

In an effort to prevent a potential catastrophe, the co-pilot urgently repeated the command to “pull up” while the ground proximity warning system sounded an alarm. The Boeing 777 descended more than 1,400 feet towards the Pacific Ocean from an altitude of over 2,200 feet before the pilots were able to regain control of the aircraft.

The NTSB report serves as a reminder of the critical importance of effective communication and collaboration between pilots during flight operations. Misunderstandings and errors in communication can have severe consequences, putting the safety of passengers and crew at risk.

United Airlines has not released a public statement in response to the NTSB report. It is expected that the airline will review the incident and implement any necessary corrective measures to prevent similar miscommunications in the future.